Southgate wary of Denmark
London: Gareth Southgate urged his England side to “make history” by reaching a first European Championship Final but warned they will face a Denmark side “riding a wave of emotion” at Wembley on Wednesday.
England booked a first European Championship semi-final since 1996 with an emphatic 4-0 win over Ukraine in Rome’s Stadio Olimpico and they will return home to meet the Danes, who edged out the Czech Republic 2-1 earlier on Saturday.
England have never been to a Euros Final after coming so close 25 years ago when Southgate missed the decisive penalty in a shootout defeat to Germany at Wembley.
The manager says his players are undaunted by the pressure of making history after rising to another challenge in Rome.
“We’ve had to suffer a bit to get to where we are,” Southgate said afterwards.
“We’ve had difficult nights, some tough performances, but we’re now playing with a lot of belief and I think the players can see what’s possible.
Long way to go
“We still have a long way to go and we’re not satisfied.
“Saturday was another enjoyable night for everybody but I’ve got to say before the end of the game I was already thinking about the next challenge and that’s the one for us.
“We’ve never been to a European Championship final so it’s another opportunity to make history.
“It’s not so much pressure for this team, it’s another challenge that they have the chance to take on. At the moment they’re rising to those challenges.”
History
Southgate is also conscious of his own place in history after becoming only the second man after Sir Alf Ramsey to lead England to the semi-finals of a World Cup and a Euros.
“When I look at the people on that list of England managers, Sir Bobby and Sir Alf and so many that have gone before, it is an absolute honour to be in that sort of company,” he said.
“I know how high I hold them in esteem and it’s lovely to be able to get the results that are putting our country on the football map again.”